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If you consider that you have been wrongly refused Carer's Allowance, or you
are unhappy about a decision of a social welfare deciding officer about your
entitlements, you can appeal this
decision.

Rules

To be entitled to a Carer's Allowance you must:

Be living with, or in a position to provide full-time care and attention
to a person in need of care who does not normally live in an institution.
However, you may continue to be regarded as providing full-time care and
attention, if you or the person being cared for is undergoing medical or
other treatment in a hospital or other institution for a period not longer
than 13 weeks.

Not live in a hospital, convalescent home or other similar institution.

Be at least 18 years old and

Not be engaged in employment, self-employment, training or education
courses outside the home for more than 15 hours a week. During your
absence, adequate care for the person requiring full-time care and
attention must be arranged.

The person you are caring for must be:

Over the age of 16 and so incapacitated as to require full-time care and
attention or

The person receiving care is regarded as requiring full-time care and
attention where

He or she is so incapacitated as to require continuous supervision in
order to avoid danger to him or herself or continual supervision and
frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily
functions, and

He or she is so incapacitated as to be likely to require full-time care
and attention for a period of at least 12 months.

What counts as means?

Your means are any income you or your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant
have or property (except your home) or an asset that could bring in money or
provide you with an income, for example, an occupational pension or benefits
from another country. Any payment made by the Department of Social Protection
is not taken into account in the means test for Carer's Allowance.

Investments and savings

The actual income from investments and money in a savings account is not
taken as your means. Instead, investment items such as, money in a savings
account, cash-in-hand or money in a current account and the cash value of
investments and property are added together and a special formula is used to
work out your weekly means. Find out more about how
capital is assessed in the means test for Carer's Allowance.

How means are assessed

The means test for the Carer's Allowance involves assessing your income
(excluding your home). €332.50 of your gross weekly income is not taken into
account (or disregarded). If you are married, in a civil partnership
or cohabiting the first €665 of your combined gross weekly income is
disregarded. PRSI, union dues, superannuation (pension contributions) and
travel expenses are also deducted.

If you are getting a social welfare payment from another state an amount up
to the maximum rate of the Irish State Pension (Contributory) is exempt from
the means test. Any foreign social welfare payment above the maximum Irish
State Pension (Contributory) rate is treated as income for the means test.

If you are getting maintenance payments these are assessed (along with any
other source of income) and the first €332.50 (or €665 for a couple) is
disregarded.

Carer's Allowance and half-rate payments

If you are getting certain social welfare payments and you are providing
full time care and attention to another person, you can keep your main social
welfare payment and get half-rate Carer's Allowance as well. If you were
getting another social welfare payment before claiming Carer's Allowance, you
may get your original payment reinstated and also get half-rate Carer's
Allowance.

If you are getting Carer's Allowance and subsequently become entitled to
another payment, you can claim the other payment and get half your rate of
Carer's Allowance but only if the other payment is a qualifying payment for
half-rate Carer's Allowance. For example, if you are getting Carer's Allowance
and work 15 hours each week, you can build up an entitlement to a contributory
payment. This means, if you are out of work sick you may be entitled to Illness
Benefit. In this case, you may get full-rate Illness Benefit and half-rate
Carer's Allowance - although this will depend on your PRSI contributions, level
of earnings and current means.

If you are being claimed for as a qualified adult on your spouse, civil
partner or cohabitant’s social welfare payment and you are providing
full-time care to another person, you may apply for half-rate Carer's Allowance
and retain your current Increase for a Qualified Adult in full.

If you are parenting alone and you are providing full-time care and
attention to your child or another person you can claim One-Parent
Family Payment and half-rate Carer’s Allowance until your youngest child
turns 16 provided you continue to meet the conditions for both schemes.

Caring for more than one person

If you are providing care to more than one person you may be entitled to an
additional 50% of the maximum rate of Carer's Allowance each week.

Care sharing

Two carers who are providing care on a part-time basis in an established
pattern can also share a single Carer’s Allowance payment and the annual
Respite Care Grant. Each carer must be providing care from Monday to Sunday but
can do so on alternate weeks. A carer providing full-time care on a part-time
basis is required under legislation to provide this care for a complete week
(Monday to Sunday).

A carer who is providing care on a part-time basis to someone who attends a
residential institution, for example, every other week, can also be
accommodated on the Carer’s Allowance scheme.

You must meet all the usual qualifying conditions for Carer’s
Allowance.

Respite Care Grant

The Respite Care Grant is automatically paid to people getting Carer's
Allowance in June of each year. You can find out more in our document about the
Respite Care Grant.

Tax implications

Rates

Your payment is made up of a personal rate for yourself and extra amounts
for any child dependants. Carer's Allowance has no
qualified adult payment.

Carer's Allowance rates in 2015

Carer

Maximum weekly rate

Aged under 66, caring for 1 person

€204

Aged under 66, caring for 2 or more

€306

Aged 66 or over and caring for 1 person

€239

Aged 66+, caring for 2 person

€358.50

Increase for a Qualified Child

€29.80 (full-rate)

€14.90 (half-rate)

You may claim a full-rate increase in your payment for a child
dependant if you are a carer and are single, widowed, separated or a civil
partner who is not living with the other civil partner. You may claim a
half-rate increase in your payment for a child dependant if you are a carer and
are living with your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant

Credits

How to apply

You should apply for a Carer's Allowance as soon possible. To apply fill in
an application form
for Carer's Allowance (CR1) (pdf). The form includes a medical report which
must be signed by the person receiving care and completed by his or her doctor
(a medical report is not necesary if you are caring for a child getting
Domicilary Care Allowance). You also fill in a CR2 form (pdf) if you are
caring for more than one person. You can contact your social welfare local
office or Citizens Information Service for the form.

Note that the application form for Carer's Allowance asks for a lot of
detailed information from you. The Department of Social Protection has to work
out your income and the income of your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant to
assess the means of your household. The Department must also examine the
medical condition of the person being cared for to decide if they need
full-time care and attention. In addition, the Department must be satisfied
that you, the carer, are providing full-time care and attention and are able to
do so. You can get help with filling in the form from your local Citizens
Information Service.

There are currently some delays in processing Carer's Allowance payments and
it may take some time for your application to be processed. You may qualify for
Supplementary
Welfare Allowance while you are waiting for your claim to be processed.

Payment will be awarded from the date your application is received or from
the date the qualifying payment is awarded, if later. Forward the completed
application form with the relevant certificates to Carer's Allowance Section at
the Department of Social Protection - see address below.

Carer’s Allowance and Domiciliary Care Allowance

If you are caring for a child who is getting Domiciliary
Care Allowance you do not need to fill in the medical report when you apply
for Carer’s Allowance. If you are getting Carer’s Allowance and Domiciliary
Care Allowance on behalf of a child who is 15 years old, you will be contacted
by the DSP approximately 7 weeks before their 16th birthday to review your
continued entitlement to Carer’s Allowance.

If your child continues to need full-time care and attention you should send
a medical report (this is part of the Carer’s Allowance form) to the DSP. If
the DSP’s medical assessors find that your child meets the medical criteria
you will continue to get your Carer’s Allowance payment. If your child does
not meet the medical criteria your claim will be closed. You can submit more
medical evidence or appeal this decision in the usual way.

Language

Related Documents

Half-rate Carer's AllowanceHalf-rate Carer's Allowance is payable with certain other social welfare payments provided you meet the qualifying criteria. Find out how to qualify for half-rate Carer's Allowance.

Carer's BenefitCarer's Benefit is a social insurance payment made to someone who gives up work to care for an incapacitated person.

Contact Us

If you have a question relating to this topic you can contact the Citizens Information Phone Service on 0761 07 4000 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm) or you can visit your local Citizens Information Centre.